The Seville European Film Festival has finalized the programming for the Official Section of its 23rd edition, which will take place from November 6 to 14. The organization has confirmed the addition of two major titles linked to literature: El director, directed by Dani de la Orden, and A Long Winter, by British filmmaker Andrew Haigh.
The Seville event, a benchmark for European cinema in Spain, arrives this year with a lineup that combines international premieres, national productions, and the presence of renowned performers such as Catherine Deneuve, Monica Bellucci, Chiara Mastroianni, Asia Argento, and Éric Cantona. The festival also includes films that have already appeared at events such as Cannes, Venice, and Locarno, including the directorial debut of actor James McAvoy.
El director, the novel by David Jiménez brought to the screen
El director adapts the novel of the same name published in 2019 by journalist David Jiménez, in which he recounted his time at the helm of one of Spain's leading newspapers after more than twenty years covering international conflicts. The work narrates the clash between his vision of free and rigorous journalism and the pressures of political and economic power within the newsroom.
Dani de la Orden, director of Casa en llamas, signs this adaptation, with a screenplay developed by Michel Gaztambide and Alejandro Hernández. The film, which will have its world premiere in Seville, stars David Verdaguer in the role of Jiménez, with Alberto San Juan as the editor Cardenal. The cast of this journalistic thriller is completed by Fernando Colomo, Xavi Sáez, Miriam Iscla, Joan Carreras, Carmen Machi, Emma Vilarasau, Guillermo Toledo, and Fernando Cayo.
A Long Winter, by Andrew Haigh, based on Colm Tóibín
Andrew Haigh, director of Weekend, presents his Spanish premiere of A Long Winter, an adaptation of a work by Irish writer Colm Tóibín. The story follows Mike, played by Fred Hechinger, a young man facing the transition to adulthood when his mother disappears during a snowstorm.
It is a co-production between the United Kingdom and Canada filmed in the landscape of the Rocky Mountains. The cast is completed by Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Caitríona Balfe, and Kit Connor.
The rest of the Official Section
With these two films, the selection for the Official Section is now closed, which already included titles such as Adult Supervision, by Alex Schulman (Sweden); Elephants in the Fog, by Abinash Bikram Shah (Nepal); 3 Weeks After, by Miroslav Terzić (Serbia); Blaise, by Dimitri Planchon and Jean-Paul Guigue (France); and Children of the Monkey, by Tommaso Landucci (Italy).
The list is completed by Falling House, by Mohsen Gharaei (Iran); You Don't Belong Here, by Florin Şerban (Romania); La desconocida, by Arthur Harari (France); Lemonade, by Kim Bartley (Ireland); Sin expectativas, by Eivind Landsvik (Norway/Denmark); Palabras de amor, by Rudi Rosenberg (France); The Idiot(s), by Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert (Poland/Germany); and Black Money for White Nights, by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov (Bulgaria/Greece).
Spanish cinema, in addition to El director, will be represented by Taranta, by Samuel Nacar, and Tralovento, by Eloy Domínguez Serén. Out of competition, Anguita. El hombre de los tres siglos, by Hugo Cabezas, will be screened.
Prominent faces in Embrujo, Alumbramiento, and Rampa
The festival's parallel sections bring together some of the most recognized figures in European cinema. Catherine Deneuve and Monica Bellucci headline, respectively, A Man's Skin (Alumbramiento), by French director Léa Domenach, and Ketticè (Embrujo), by Italian director Giovanni Tortorici.
Embrujo also adds Hugo, by Frenchman Pascal Bonitzer, starring Chiara Mastroianni; and La muerte no tiene dueño, a co-production from Venezuela, Canada, Italy, and Luxembourg directed by Jorge Thielen Armand and starring Asia Argento. In the Rampa section, footballer Éric Cantona stars in Marvelous Mornings, the first feature film by French director Avril Besson.
Family stories and childhood
This year's programming has a strong intimate component. In Embrujo, Ulya, by Latvian director Viesturs Kairišs, stands out, focusing on the youth of basketball player Ulyana Semjonova, and Revolutionaries Never Die, by Palestinian director Mohanad Yaqubi, which recovers materials from Lebanese filmmaker Jocelyne Saab.
The Czech film If Pigeons Turned to Gold, by Pepa Lubojacki, draws from the director's own family experience to address addictions and social ostracism, while Under a Bad Star, by French directors Lola Cambourieu and Yann Berlier, is also inspired by dysfunctional childhood experiences.
In Rampa, German director Kilian Armando Friedrich brings his time as a cleaner to the screen in I Understand Your Displeasure; Cameroonian director Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu debuts in feature film with House Of The Wind, focusing on family ties; Austrian director Manuel Wetscher addresses the stigma of AIDS in Eklipse; and Albanian director Arthur Michel blurs the lines between fiction and reality in Where Giants Sleeps.
The debut of James McAvoy and other premieres
One of the most striking proposals of the festival is California Schemin', the directorial debut of actor James McAvoy. The film, co-produced by the United Kingdom and the United States, recreates the true story of the Scottish rap duo Silibil N' Brains, formed by Gavin Bain and Billy Boyd, who in the early 2000s posed as artists from Southern California to break into the hip-hop scene. The screenplay is the work of Archie Thompson and Elaine Gracie.
Finally, the Alumbramiento section will include Four Minus Three, by Austrian director Adrian Goiginger, an adaptation of Barbara Pachl-Eberhart's autobiographical novel about the loss of a family in a traffic accident and the subsequent grief.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the 2025 Seville European Film Festival held?
The 23rd edition will take place from November 6 to 14.
Who directs the adaptation of El director?
The film is directed by Dani de la Orden, with David Verdaguer and Alberto San Juan in the lead roles.
What is A Long Winter based on?
It is an adaptation of a work by writer Colm Tóibín, directed by Andrew Haigh and starring Fred Hechinger, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Caitríona Balfe, and Kit Connor.
Which prominent actors are participating in the festival this year?
Among others, Catherine Deneuve, Monica Bellucci, Chiara Mastroianni, Asia Argento, and former footballer Éric Cantona.
Which Spanish films are competing in the Official Section?
In addition to El director, Taranta, by Samuel Nacar, and Tralovento, by Eloy Domínguez Serén, are competing.
Which directorial debut stands out in this edition?
Actor James McAvoy debuts as a director with California Schemin', about the Scottish rap duo Silibil N' Brains.
